Update info

Friday, March 16, 2012

Unexpected
torrents of rain displace over 1,000 people in Punta
Arenas in Chile’s
south.

A torrent of rainfall struck
Punta Arenas, near the southern tip of Chile,
on late Sunday night, flooding nearly 240 acres of land and culminating in the
worst storm in the city had seen in 22 years. Read

Texas drought
threatens agriculture

Farmers are unlikely to bring in
big yields due to insufficient water as a result of an ongoing drought in the
U.S. state of Texas. Watch

Cusco, Peru,
in state of emergency

The Government of Cusco declared
emergency for 60 days due to the damage caused by the rain. Read

Other Disasters
Related News

Drought Takes
Toll On Mexico’s Monarch Population

A new report says the number of
Monarch butterflies wintering in Mexico is down and the drought is
part of the reason. Read

Argentina - Farmers
slowly start to harvest drought-hit soy

Farmers have started harvesting
soybeans but heavy rains that arrived after months of drought have slowed
efforts to gather the parched crops, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said. Read

Warmth
Expected Across U.S. for Next
Three Months, U.S.
Says

A streak of above-normal
temperatures that led to the fourth-warmest U.S.
winter on record is expected to continue for the next three months, the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said. Read

U.S. tornado damage
'manageable' for insurance industry: S&P

The analysis, “Despite the
Early Start to the 2012 U.S. Tornado Season, Insured Losses are Manageable for
the Industry,” noted a report by catastrophe modeler EQECAT Inc. that found
tornado activity through early March was more than double that of the 2005-2011
average. Read

Friday, March 9, 2012

More than 130,000 people have been
affected by floods in 10 municipalities of Acre State, Brazil. Read

Fatal floods in
Ecuador

The Ecuadorian government
has announced that at least 20 people have died and 65 were injured due to the
flooding in Ecuador's coastal provinces. Watch

Recap of deadly
U.S. tornado outbreak February
28-March 3, 2012

A deadly series of storms produced
violent tornadoes that killed over 50 people from February 28 to March 3, 2012.
Read

Other Disasters
Related News

Dominica receives
US$4.1-m CDB loan

“The new loan would help
Dominica reduce risks
associated with landslide and flood hazards in the RoseauValley,” saidCaribbean Development Bank (CDB)
President Dr Warren Smith. Read

Scientists see
rise in tornado-creating conditions

According to some climate
scientists, such earlier-than-normal outbreaks of tornadoes, which typically
peak in the spring, will become the norm as the planet warms. Read

Simple Steps to
Improving Aid Effectiveness

As donors struggle to meet their
aid commitments, and the number of people around the world in need of direct
humanitarian and development assistance skyrockets, many experts and activists
are asking the tough question: are donors being effective? Read

Forecasters: La
Niña gone by end of April, dry spell may plague US South

Solar storm
strengthens Friday before it wanes; new flare heading to Earth on
Sunday

Solar storms, which can’t hurt
people, can disturb electric grids, GPS systems, and satellites. They can also
spread colorful Northern Lights further south than usual, as the latest storm
did early Friday. Read

Friday, March 2, 2012

Residents in northeast Alabama assessed the
damage Friday caused by at least two apparent tornadoes in the area, including
blows to a high school and a prison. ReadU.S. Midwest
hit by tornadoes that take lives, destroy homes

At least nine people were killed
and parts of several towns were flattened, according to local officials on
February 29. Read

Tornado
aftermath in the US - in
pictures

Residents of towns in the
American south Midwest assess the damage after
tornadoes killed people and caused widespread
destruction.

Two years after the earthquake and
tsunami in south-central Chile, the worst natural disaster to
hit the country in half a century, thousands of families who saw their homes
destroyed are still waiting for a solution. Read

Praying for
rain in Paraguay

A severe drought is threatening
the livelihood of thousands of small farmers across Paraguay. Read

South American
Drought Affecting Soybean Reserve Levels

Drought in South America, where farmers are harvesting this month,
caused irreversible crop damage and will reduce global production by 7.2
percent. Read

Brazil, emerging
South-South donor

The Brazilian government is
stepping up South-South aid, to strengthen the South American giant’s status as
a donor country and its international clout. It now provides assistance to 65
countries, and its financial aid has grown threefold in the last seven years. Read

Dominica - West coast
residents to get storm relief

Over one hundred residents along
Dominica’s west coast affected by a
tropical storm in 2011 will receive relief from next week. Read

Panama will
substantially improve its ability to respond to natural disasters with a $100
million Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) standby loan. Read

High school
teachers in the Bahamas attend seminar on climate
change

“Workshops cover three years of
information sharing. They are targeted to benefit educators, journalists, and
policymakers to help citizens make an effortless transition to adapting to
climate change,” said Lisa Benjamin, chairwoman for the Public Education and
Outreach (PEO) Sub-Committee, under the National Climate Change Committee. Read

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